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Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Wildlife In The Creek

Some of you know that when I sit at the little desk in the kitchen I have a view of the creek. There is always something going on in the creek this time of year. Little fish, bigger fish, Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Osprey and a host of other characters are all in action. Last night I had the best view of a very reclusive creature. A HUGE Snapping Turtle!

Charlie and I ran out to get a better look, me without my camera. Upon his insistence I hustled back in to get the camera...thinking 'by the time I get back that turtle will be under the mud'.
Tide was low and on its way out so unless this turtle decided to hide in the mud we were going to have a great view of its trek down the creek.

See him look at me??? Whoaaa

I kept snapping pictures as he (she?) slowly worked its way through the remaining water. Here he is really struggling to make headway.

Once it was clear we were there, he started pulling his head in and dove into the muddy bottom. He waited until we went in and then under the cover of the mud, continued to work his way along.

Guess I should say its shell was close to 2 feet long, though I have no photo that contains a point of reference.

Dear Janet, you were so lucky to take those great pictures! I can imagine the adrenalin rising when you hurry inside to get the camera - and then: luck, the enormous turtle is still there! Wonderful AND exciting - a real treat! (In Hamburg you have to go to the zoo to see a turtle at Hagenbek). Thanks for sharing! Britta

That is such great picture work Janet. They must dig down fast in the mud. Make some good soup. Maybe. I remember eating some turtle meat when small but I cannot remember now what it tasted like. I use to be scared when I was swimming in the creeks I would step on one. LOL! They use to tell stories of them biting and not letting go until the sun went down. Fact or fiction? I don't know. ;-)

Now that is something! A 2-foot shell length suggests a very old turtle...I wonder how old it is! Good thing you don't have a tiny little dog playing out in your backyard;-) Or worse, a child! It looks like it could snap something small like that right up...eek! Really great photos. I showed them to Mike and Michael and they both "ooh'd and awe'd"!!

We once saw some folks (who had never encountered a snapper) stop to move one out of the road. My husband slammed on brakes and told them not to pick up that turtle! Ouch! When I was growing up, I'd go fishing with my father. Snappers would sometimes cut the bait and hook right off the line.

That's a biggun', Janet! Romie and I were coming home from church a couple of weeks ago and a big snapper was at the edge of the road, so we stopped. Romie picked it up and took it down into the ditch. It tried to bite him, but couldn;t turn his head back far enough. They have big mouths!

Sounds bigger than the turtle that I see heading to the neighbor's pond most springs. Of course I can't be sure it's the same turtle, it could be one of two. One is a female for sure, because she laid eggs in the back of the garden one year. I'd guess that she has a 16" shell. She always stops when I approach her, and doesn't move on until I leave. It's a little eerie. Needless to say I don't get too close.

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